Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens from The Little White Bird Illustrated by Arthur Rackham

London: Hodder and Stoughton Limited, 1957. Earlier printing; 1957 at copyright page. Oversize 7 1/2" x 10" design. Red buckram (full cloth) boards, blind-stamped cover design and dentelle borders, bright gilt flourishing spine titles, moderate shelf wear, rub, discoloration, some bow. Somewhat unpronounced blind-stamped cover image of Peter playing his pan flute sitting upon mushroom patch. Deckled pages generally good, clean; moderate mustiness. Features sixteen heavy stock color plates w/captions. Also beautifully charming and subdued b&w full and partial-page imagery and vignettes by Arthur Rackham throughout. Bind good; hinges intact. Scarce original wrapper, some edge wear, rub, discoloration, spotting to back panel. Unclipped 20/s net; protected in new clear sleeve. Stated at front flap: "The story which has rejoiced the heart of three generations". Fair, but solid, complete example with intact original wrapper. In Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, J.M. Barrie first created Peter Pan as an infant, living a wild and secret life with birds and fairies in the middle of London. Later Barrie let this remarkable child grow a little older and he became the boy-hero of Neverland, making his first appearance with Wendy, Captain Hook, and the Lost Boys. Barrie's novel The Little White Bird of 1902 contains the first sketches for Peter Pan. The narrator is 'a gentle, whimsical, lonely old bachelor', an author by profession, whose ambition is to have a son. He meets a penniless young couple whose own son David fulfills his desire. The narrator explains that all children in our part of London were once birds in the Kensington Gardens. And, that the reason there are bars on nursery windows and a tall fender by the fire is because very little people sometimes forget that they no longer have wings, and try to fly away through the window or up the chimney. One such child, Peter Pan, escaped from being a human when he was seven days old and flew back to the Kensington Gardens. The Peter Pan stories were Barrie's only works for children, but as their persistent popularity shows, their themes of imaginative escape continue to charm even those who long ago left Neverland. Made and printed in Great Britain for Hodder & Stoughton Ltd., Text Printed by T. and A. Constable Ltd., Edinburgh. Illustrations by Henry Stone and Son Ltd., Banbury. 123 pages. Insured post.. First Edition. Hard Cover. Fair/Fair. Illus. by Rackham, Arthur. 4to - over 9¾" - 12" tall.